A protection device as well as a sealing system of the type described at the outset are known, for example, from EP 0 696 459 B1. The protection device serves the purpose of protecting the sealing element, which is often produced from an elastic material, during the insertion of instruments with pointed ends into the trocar. Sharp ends of instruments, for example, tips and edges on tool elements of the instruments can lead to the instrument tip becoming caught up in the sealing element and, therefore, the insertion of the instrument will be made more difficult or even impossible. In the most unfavorable case, the sealing element can even be destroyed. In addition, the protection elements have the advantage that they aid an elastic expansion of the insertion opening in the case of instruments with large diameters. The known, lamellar protection elements normally rest on the sealing element and so a disadvantageous relative movement between the protection element and the sealing element can result, in particular, during the insertion of an instrument through the insertion opening of the sealing element.
One disadvantage of the known protection devices is the fact that the protection elements do not always reach exactly as far as the sealing area. It is, therefore, possible for unprotected areas of the sealing element to remain which can be damaged by sharp ends of instruments.
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to improve a surgical protection device as well as a surgical sealing system of the type described at the outset such that protection of the sealing element can be as complete as possible irrespective of the degree of expansion thereof.